I'm back! And with a brand new story…hehe. (Yeah, I know, I really need to learn to finish what I start first XD) So this is inspired by one of my favorite songs, "Hotel California", by The Eagles. It's a supernatural/mystery this time…just kinda wanted to try something outside of the romance/drama genre, see how it goes (let's hope not badly). I know what the song is really about, but I just wanted to try and take the lyrics literally, as if it really is a story about a place called the Hotel California…should be fun :)

Disclaimer: I own nothing here except the weird plot I'm gonna try to make up as I go XD

On a dark desert highway, cool wind in my hair
Warm smell of colitas, rising up through the air
Up ahead in the distance, I saw a shimmering light
My head grew heavy and my sight grew dim
I had to stop for the night

-The Eagles, Hotel California

The harsh sun glared down on the barren, Mexican desert landscape. Patches of dry brush were all over, pointy cactuses here and there. A coyote slowly crept out from its hiding place, several feet away from an unaware desert hare. Bit by bit, the predator inched closer to its prey. Just as it was about to pounce, a noise in the distance stopped it. The hare, ears twitching, quickly leapt away. Growling at having lost its easy meal, the coyote turned its head at the distraction. Eyes wide, it yelped and jumped out of the way just in time, as a black and green car sped through, chased by a white and blue car and a red and black motorcycle. The cloud of dirt and sand slowly disappeared as the animal blinked in surprise, before shaking its head and pacing away.

"Yeah, Gizmo, you better run!" Cyborg gripped the wheel of the T-car, sharply steering left to avoid a pile of boulders, before turning back. Beast Boy, sitting in the passenger seat, looked as if he was ready to puke, turning a sick shade of bright green.

"Dude, please warn me before you decide to do that again…" His hands grabbed onto the side of the car door for dear life as they ran over a rough patch of ground, speeding forward even faster.

"I do not understand why this "HIVE Five" insist to continue with their thievery and trouble-making," Starfire asked as she flew above with Raven. "Surely they would have stopped after they lost their leader?"

"Well, they're not exactly the brightest bunch," said the sorceress beside her. "After Jinx left, the only thing they could probably think of doing was what they're good at: being pests."

"Whatever the reason," Robin's serious voice sounded out over their communicators. "We're going to bring them down." The R-cycle roared ahead. Robin threw several smoke bombs, blowing up and blocking the villains way. With a push of button, fan blades emerged from the front of the car, and in a few seconds, the smoke had been blown away. Snickering, the "evil boy genius" tapped a few more buttons, and a huge claw shot out of the left side, grabbing the boy wonder, slowly crushing him.

"Looks like we caught a little bird," Mammoth smirked.

Raven's hands glowed, and the claw, surrounded by black energy, was broken in two. Robin landed back on his bike, steering away as Starfire blasted the rear of the vehicle with starbolts.

"Crud!" Gizmo glanced at his rear view mirror. "Stop her before she blows out the back!"

Kid Wykkyd nodded as he teleported himself and See-More out of the back seat and behind the two girls. Starfire's eyes glowed green as she prepared to use her eyebeams, but before she could shoot, See-More launched a huge eye, hitting her in the back.

"Ugh!" She was knocked to the side, flying for several yards.

Raven turned on him, uttering her magical chant. "Aza-"

She was cut short as Kid Wykkyd phased before her, delivering a strong right punch that sent her falling towards the ground.

Cyborg scowled. "BB-"

"On it!" He rolled down the window, zipping out as a hummingbird and then morphing into a pterodactyl. He soared up, grabbing See-More with his talons and throwing him at Kid Wykkyd. See-More's shouts could be heard as they flew, landing in a heap hundreds of feet away.

Changing into a hawk, he began to fly back towards the T-car. "AAH!" He screamed as a missile hit him, returning to his human form. Gizmo began to aim another, but missed, having to swerve left and right to avoid the twin blasters that rose up from the sides of the T-car's hood. Beast Boy fell through the open sunroof and landed with a thud in the back seat. He clutched his head, vision spinning.

"You okay?" Cyborg asked, the energy blasts successfully taking out the missile launcher.

"Ughhh…yeah, I'm okay…"

Cyborg hit a red button in the middle of the T-car console. The smaller blasters tucked away, and in their place, a huge sonic cannon, similar to his own, rose out of the middle of the hood. He aimed and, locking onto the target, fired a huge blue blast. It shattered the glass and left a gaping hole in the rear window and windshield, knocking out Mammoth in the process, who'd been too slow to duck in time.

"Booyah!" Cyborg grinned. "Three down, two to go!"

"More like fifty!" Billy Numerous leapt out the back through the hole, multiplying in the blink of an eye to form a human wall around the T-car. It screeched to a halt, tires smoking.

All the Billies smirked as they continued to divide, until the ring was four rows thick.

"Ooh," he said with his thick Southern accent. "That sure is a nice ride ya got there…mind if we stealit?" They laughed as they ran forward, climbing onto the T-car from all angles.

"What the—Hey, get off!" Cyborg exclaimed as two reached the roof, trying to pry open the sunroof.

"Who-oaa!" One Billy slipped, hitting the back as he fell to the ground, leaving a dent.

His eyes widened. "YO! You're gonna pay for that, you little-!"

Several Billies cackled as they jumped up and down on the T-car.

"Duuude," Beast Boy sat up, trying to hold on as the automobile bounced. His face began to look queasy, turning bright green once again. "If they don't quit it, I think I'm gonna be sick all over the seat."

"Oh no you don't! Get any of your nasty puke on my baby and I swear I'll throw you out of this car!"

Counting to three, the Billies jumped together in the air, smashing into the car. It violently jerked forward, and Beast Boys eyes widened. "Oh man-"

Cyborg's jaw dropped, horrified at the sight before him. His stomach churned. "Argh…now I'm gonna be sick…"

"Yow!" hollered Billy as he fell back off the T-car, hit with a blast of green energy.

"What's wrong Billy—Oww!" Another yelled as he too was fried.

The others spun around, faces dropping. "Uh oh." A huge column of green surrounded by black crackling power hit them, sending all the Billies flying.

Cyborg gave the girls a thumbs up as he got his "baby" to start again.

Meanwhile, Robin sped after the HIVE five getaway car. A gun rose from the back and shot out a net, but the Teen Titans leader flipped in the air as it missed him, enwrapping a cactus instead. He landed back on the R-cycle, continuing the chase. Up ahead, a huge rock outcrop loomed, looking almost like a small mountain. Gizmo swerved right as the motorcycle went left, out of sight.

Letting out a sigh of relief, he went even faster, intending to leave Robin in the dust. Mammoth's eyes slowly opened as he shook his head.

"Geez, you're finally awake," Gizmo muttered. "We could've used your help back there, you dimwit!"

"Where'd the others go?"

"Got their butts kicked by the other stinkin' Titans. But I think we lost them-"

Beep. Beep. "Huh?" Gizmo looked up towards the roof, where a red light was blinking, beeping even faster. Eyes wide, he yelled, "Get down!" The entire top exploded off, metal flying everywhere.

"Hah!" Robin landed a kick to Mammoth's jaw, leaping back and crouching on the trunk of the car. The behemoth growled, swinging his huge right fist at his head, but missed as Robin swiftly dodged it. Extending his bo staff, he jumped, coming down swinging.

"Hey—Ow! Ouch! OW! You little-!" Mammoth swore as Robin beat, struck, and whacked him again and again. Spinning his staff, he got ready for one final blow, but Mammoth lunged, grabbing his weapon in mid strike and swinging it hard to left, causing Robin to smack right into the back car door. He fell to the floor as the villain loomed over him, cracking both knuckles.

"Time to put you to sleep," he snarled, raising both fists.

"I intend to," Robin said, in a low whisper. As the giant's hands came down, the teen hero launched himself over him as the knock out gas pellets he dropped exploded. Mammoth drowsily stumbled forward, tripping and falling out of the car.

Gizmo's eyes narrowed as the shield on his helmet rose. As the car began to leave the rock outcrop behind, he threw back his own explosive device. Before it could go off, Robin jumped out, back flipping onto the boulders and landing on his motorcycle as it roared forward. He flipped the autopilot off as he revved the engine, zooming towards the car.

He pulled up right next to the driver's side window. "It's over, Gizmo. Pull over, now!"

"Why don't you make me, birdbrain!" he shouted back, ramming his automobile against the R-cycle. Metal screeched against metal, sparks flying.

Suddenly, Robin slammed on the brakes, kicking up dust as he stopped. Gizmo looked in his side view mirror confused, until he turned back forward and shrieked in surprise. He stopped the car just in time to avoid crashing into the T-car. Raven and Starfire landed to his left and right. He was trapped.

"Surrender, Gizmo! Do not force us to harm you!" Starfire's eyes glowed green.

"There's no where left for you to run, little runt," Cyborg aimed his sonic canon dead ahead.

Trying to quickly think of a plan, he noticed something in the corner of his vision. He smirked.

"Actually, tin man…" He put the car into reverse. "I should be saying that to you." Wheeling backwards, he got out of the way as Kid Wykkyd teleported above them, dropping See-More onto the hood of the T-car. Turning the dial on his helmet, he fired an eye shaped bubble that grew to envelope the entire vehicle. He flipped back onto the roof, and with another click of the dial, his eyeball became red, shooting laser beams at Starfire and Raven. The Tamaranian cried out as she was hit in the chest, crashing to the ground. The dark enchantress darted away in the nick of time. She levitated up, raising a hand as she telepathically picked up several large boulders, flinging them at the duo. They jumped out of the way, one of the rocks barely missing the T-car.

Kid Wykkyd disappeared once again as Raven went on the defense, putting up shield after shield to block each of See-More's attacks.

"I 'see' there's something you're missing!" he grinned.

Feeling a sudden presence behind her, she barely had time to gasp as Mammoth fell from a hole in the sky, body slamming her into the earth.

The R-cycle sped forward, but before he could reach the others, Billy Numerous leapt in the leader's way. He veered to the left, almost falling off the bike as Billy laughed. "Not so fast, Bubba," he said, waving a finger. He divided and divided, blocking Robin's way and steering him off course. Birdarang in hand, he threw it towards them. It cut through the air, all the Billies ducking except for the last one, who caught it.

"Say Billy," He mused.

"What's that, Billy?" asked another.

"This sure is a fancy looking toy. Kinda like a boomerang…wanna play catch?"

"Sure, Billy! Yeehaw!" He shouted as the Billies began throwing it back and forth to each other. Left, right, front, back, Robin had to duck and swerve to avoid being hit from every angle.

A huge boom resonated as Cyborg blew a hole in the barrier. Starfire stood, getting her bearings before helping to free them by destroying the rest of the bubble with starbolts. At the same time, Gizmo pulled up, letting See-More, Kid Wykkyd, and Mammoth climb in.

Having had enough, Robin threw an explosive disc, hitting the birdarang directly. The Billies stumbled back, fusing back together in the blink of an eye until only the original Numerous stood. Giving him a mock solute, Billy winked before jumping into the HIVE five car.

"Thanks for turnin' this into a convertible!" He called back as Gizmo stepped on the gas, speeding away.

Robin's eyes narrowed, as Starfire helped Raven get up and Cyborg drove the T-car out of its prison. His grip on the handlebars tightened as he revved the engine.

"Titans, go!" he shouted. The two vehicles continued their chase, the girls following in the skies above. A sudden breeze came over them from behind, blowing in the opposite direction they were heading. Thinking nothing of it, they flew on…until the winds became stronger, enough to begin making it hard for them to keep themselves steady. Starfire and Raven exchanged puzzled looks, soaring several feet lower.

On the ground, the boys began to notice something was up, too, as clouds of dirt and sand began to form, obscuring their vision.

"Friends, something is wrong," Starfire spoke into her communicator.

"I think it's a sandstorm," Cyborg replied, squinting his eyes to try to avoid hitting anything.

"Titans," Robin drove as carefully as he could. "Stay together. We don't know how long this could last for; might be hours or possibly days."

Beast Boy jolted in his seat. "Days? What are we suppose to do 'till its over?"

"We'll have to find somewhere safe to stop and-" Before Robin could finish his sentence, the winds suddenly picked up, stronger than ever before. They turned into gales that kicked up so much sand that it stung the girls' skin and struck the windows of the T-car. The winds howled, rushing over the landscape relentlessly. The girls were forced to land, unable to keep their footing as they fell. Cyborg and Beast Boy yelped as they collided into a mass of huge rocks. They jumped out of the car just in time as a giant cactus fell, crushing the automobile. Robin tried, but couldn't keep going, bringing the R-cycle to a halt. He was immediately blown over, hitting the ground. Endless amounts of sand whipped through the air as the five teens, all managing to hold on to something, shut their eyes, wondering how long they would have to hold out for. But then, after a few more minutes of torture, the winds suddenly began to let up. In a matter of seconds, the sandstorm had ceased. The sand steadily cleared until the sky and surroundings were visible once again.

The HIVE five sat tangled up in their car. After much cursing and shouting, they finally freed themselves, staggering out and looking around. Finding no one else, they looked at each other, confused.

"…Umm…Where'd they go?" See-More asked. The others could only shrug.

TT

One minute, their ears had been ringing with the howling wind. Now, there was nothing around them but an eerie silence. Beasty Boy gradually got back to his feet, Cyborg next to him, hitting the side of his head until a river of sand poured out of his ear. The changeling looked around, calling out, "Starfire! Raven!"

"Over here, friends!" Several yards away, they found the girls. Starfire kicked off her long purple boots, trying to shake out as much sand as she could, while Raven tried to fix her hair, poofed and sticking up at weird angles.

"I like your new hairdo, Raven," Beast Boy snickered while Cyborg tried to hold in his laugh. She sent them a death glare that shut the two up at once.

They turned as they heard Robin approach, shaken up as well but unharmed. "Is everyone okay?" he asked. The four nodded.

"That was…quite unpleasant." Starfire murmured as she pulled her boots back on and straightened her skirt.

"You could say that again," The green boy stuck his tongue out. "I think I got sand in my mouth, bleh!"

"Such events are common on Earth?"

"Not in this area," Cyborg frowned. "I mean, sandstorms happen in deserts all the time, but in this part of the world…not ones thatstrong. And even for a sandstorm…man, that was crazy, it was almost as strong as a tornado!"

"Cyborg's right," Robin mused. "Whatever that was, it wasn't…natural."

"I am just glad that none of us were seriously harmed." The alien princess smiled.

Raven's eyes scanned left and right. "So…what happened to the T-car?"

A sad, tragic look swept across Cyborg's face. "My…my baby!" As he began to cry, wailing in despair, Beast Boy explained. "Well, during the storm, it kinda got…a bit banged up-"

"A bit banged up? She was MASSACRED!" Raven rolled her eyes.

"And I couldn't hold on to the R-cycle without ending up with just a few scratches and bruises," Robin sighed, running a gloved hand through his dark hair.

"So, what shall we do now?" Starfire inquired as Raven's powers formed a huge dark fist that bonked Cyborg on the head, knocking some sense into him as he stopped sobbing and straightened up.

"Well, seeing as we're practically in the middle of nowhere, we're going to have to get some help." Their leader's gaze shifted, looking out into the distance. "Cyborg, do you think you can locate where exactly where are and how much further it is to the nearest town?"

He looked down at his cybernetic arm, trying to run several scans but came up unsuccessful. "I can't get my scans to run properly…there's some kind of weird interference blocking my signals."

Starfire flew up, shielding her eyes as she looked around. Coming back down, she shook her head. "And I was unable to locate any populated areas nearby."

"Then as much as I hate to say it," Robin took a few steps forward, then turned around, facing his team. "It looks like we're just going to have to walk until we find someone."

TT

Several hours later, the five teenagers had walked, trudged, and, in Beast Boy's case, had themselves dragged along, but still had found nothing. "Dude," the green boy panted. "I swear this is the third time we've past that cactus."

"How can you tell, they all look the same," Raven muttered, pulling her hair back away from her face.

"Well, that one looks kinda funny…has a weird shaped bumb on the top."

"Like the one on your head when they dropped you as a baby?"

He gave her a look, then sighed. "Ugh…I'm too tired to even argue with you."

The sun began creeping lower towards the horizon; in about a half hour or so, it would disappear completely. Starfire shivered as it began to get cooler around them. She wrapped her arms around herself. "I am hoping that we locate shelter soon."

Robin nodded in agreement. "It'll be night soon…we need to find somewhere to stop before the temperature drops any lower. Maybe we can find a cave or something near the hillside..."

"Guys! I think I found something over here," Cyborg called, waving them over. The others gathered around as he knelt down, wiping away the dirt and sand that had collected over a sign.

"'Hotel California, straight ahead'…" Beast Boy read. They looked at each other, eyebrows raised.

"Star, try scouting ahead to see if anything's there," Robin ordered. She nodded, flying away. After a few minutes, she came back, smiling. "There is! We are saved!" The others excitedly hurried along, except for Raven. She knelt down, running a slender finger along the letters etched in wood. A shiver ran up her spine as a small breeze blew across her neck.

Noticing she wasn't following, Robin stopped and turned. "Is something wrong?"

She looked up. "…No, it's…it's nothing." She stood, dusting off her cloak and then joined the others. He gave her an inquiring look, but she just shook her head.

The group trekked along until, in the distance, they could see the outline of a building, lights shining, like stars to them in their state of weariness. Starfire clapped her hands in joy as Cyborg let out another "booyah" and Beast Boy morphed into a dog, barking happily.

As they got closer, the lights became brighter, the sky streaking with shades of orange and red as the sun began to set. Now that they could see the building clearer, Raven bit her lip. She couldn't explain why, but the moment she had seen the name of this place, an uneasy feeling had come over her. Resurfaced feelings of dread…and danger. But Robin was right; they needed a place to stay, at least for the night. And in their current situation, no matter what she felt, they had no other choice.

Yeah, that wasn't the best first chapter…but hopefully, when things start getting spookier in the story, it'll be better :) I actually spent a lot of time trying to write this…mostly because I've never written a fight scene before, haha…and since I'm from Hawaii, I didn't really know much about the desert, so I spent a lot of time with my best friends, Wikipedia and Google XD

So what did you guys think? Is it a story worth continuing? Let me know by reviewing! I need all the advice I can get!